Growth-focused Western Australian nickel company St George Mining (ASX: SGQ) today announced that drilling will start this week with the launch of a multi-faceted exploration campaign at its flagship high-grade Mt Alexander project, located in the north-eastern Goldfields of WA.
HIGHLIGHTS:
Diamond drilling to commence this week:
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+4,000m diamond drill programme to start this week at Mt Alexander.
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Multiple new electromagnetic (EM) conductors that were identified from recent downhole EM (DHEM) surveys to be drilled.
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High-priority targets for massive nickel-copper sulphides include:
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two conductors modelled with conductivity of 55,550 Siemens and 26,000 Siemens, respectively, identified from the DHEM survey in MAD192; and
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two conductors modelled with conductivity of 33,100 Siemens and 14,225 Siemens, respectively, identified from the DHEM survey in MAD185.
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Ground EM survey to test for potential northern repetition of the Cathedrals Belt:
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Moving loop EM (MLEM) survey to be rolled out across the deep conductive structures identified on exploration licence E29/548 by the 2020 magnetotelluric (MT) survey.
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These conductive structures trend east-west and are parallel to the highly mineralised Cathedrals Belt.
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MLEM survey will search for discrete conductive bodies that may represent massive nickel-copper sulphides.
Petrographic analysis of drill core identifies intrusive rocks very favorable for hosting nickel-copper sulphides:
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Petrographic analysis has been completed on sections of drill core from MAD181 which was drilled at Investigators and intersected a 49.45m thick mafic-ultramafic intrusive unit.
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Rock types identified as leuconorite and gabbronorite – intrusive-style rocks that are rare in the Yilgarn Craton but where present in other parts of Western Australia, are associated with significant intrusive nickel-copper sulphide deposits including Nova-Bollinger, Savannah and Nebo-Babel.
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Petrographic results confirm the intrusive nature of the rocks and provide further support for the discovery of more significant nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation across the Cathedrals Belt – already identified along a strike of more than 5.5km and open laterally and at depth.
Airborne magnetic survey planned for exploration licences E29/972 and E29/1041 E29/972 and E29/1041:
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New airborne magnetic survey to be completed over these two recently acquired licences and will complement the 2016 magnetic survey carried out by St George over the then-existing project area.
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New survey will search for linear magnetic features that may represent ultramafic belts similar to the nickel-copper sulphide bearing Cathedrals Belt.
Soil survey planned for E29/1041:
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Rock chip samples from E29/1041 returned elevated readings for nickel and copper supporting the potential for nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation within the area.
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Geochemical soil survey to be completed over a broad area of the tenement to test for the presence of mineralised ultramafics.
John Prineas, St George Mining’s Executive Chairman, said:
“We are very excited to be resuming diamond drilling at Mt Alexander this week. The very strong EM conductors that will be drilled are outstanding targets for massive sulphide mineralisation.
“We have never had a false positive EM reading at the Cathedrals Belt with all conductors of this kind drilled being confirmed as nickel-copper sulphides.
“The new conductors are located approximately 500m to 800m north-west of known massive sulphides in the Cathedrals Belt and are the deepest conductors identified in the Belt.
“The discovery of new nickel-copper sulphide deposits in these locations would be a major success in our ongoing exploration at Mt Alexander and significantly expand the potential footprint of high-grade mineralisation at the Project.
“We are also excited about activities planned across the wider tenement package at Mt Alexander. These areas are either underexplored or unexplored and offer an excellent opportunity to add to the exploration success we have already achieved at the Cathedrals Belt.
“As the nickel price reaches a 10-year high, St George is well positioned to deliver significant shareholder value through its ongoing exploration and development programmes at Mt Alexander.
“With high-grade nickel-copper-cobalt-PGEs at Mt Alexander commencing 30m from surface, a large underexplored mineral system and a location in an established mining region of Western Australia – in the backyard of major mining companies – our Project commands unique attention amongst its peers.”
